Sony and Apple Face Patent Lawsuits Over PSN & iTunes Systems

This weekend a patent infringement claim lawsuit was filed against Sony and Apple over the technology used in their data vending systems for PlayStation Network (PSN) and the iTunes system.

To quote from the official Press Release: PALO ALTO, Calif. - The inventor of technology used in data vending systems such as the iTunes and Playstation Network systems has sued Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple Inc. (NYSE: APPL) and Foster City, Calif.-based Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC (NYSE: SNE) for patent infringement.

Inventor Benjamin Grobler is represented by intellectual property attorneys Christopher Banys and Richard C. Lin from the Palo Alto, Calif., office of The Lanier Law Firm. The lawsuits filed March on 27, 2012, allege that Apple and Sony are infringing U.S. Patent No. 6,799,084.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office issued the ‘084 patent to Mr. Grobler in 2004. The patent covers data vending systems that allow users to store and manage digital music, video, software and other items on a variety of electronic devices.

According to the lawsuit, Apple and Sony have infringed the patent by making and offering infringing data vending systems such as iTunes and the Playstation Network, and that the companies are inducing their customers’ infringement by using these systems.

“You would be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t listened to music or watched a video through iTunes or the Playstation Network,” says Mr. Banys, head of the nationwide intellectual property practice at The Lanier Law Firm. “Tech giants can’t just take an inventor’s work and use it as their own. This lawsuit represents our client’s effort to bring some accountability to the system.”

The cases are Benjamin Grobler v. Apple Inc., No. CV-12-1534, and Benjamin Grobler v. Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC, No. CV-12-1526. Both are pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

With offices in Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Houston and New York, The Lanier Law Firm is committed to addressing client concerns with effective and innovative solutions in courtrooms across the country. The firm is composed of outstanding trial attorneys with decades of experience handling cases involving pharmaceutical liability, asbestos exposure, intellectual property, business litigation, product liability, maritime law, bad faith insurance claims and sports and entertainment law.

why was the xbox marketplace left out of this? does the inventor have a personal interest in m$? what about the google play store? don't they also have a similar implementation that should be included in this lawsuit?

i wonder if the inventor ever had the intention to use his patent and produce a vending system, or if he filed for the patent just to sue big companies later that actually have the means and reason to implement their own systems. i would guess he is more of a patent whore than anything else.